Multiple section straight knitting machines



p 10, 1957 D. H. TURNER 2,805,562

MULTIPLE SECTION STRAIGHT KNITTING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 7, 1955 INVENTOR- D an]: H Tur'ner @WV/ M Sept 10, 1957 D. H. TURNER 2,305,562

MULTIPLE SECTION STRAIGHT KNITTING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed 001. 7, 1955 INVENTOR. I) erfi' Tur'ner' BY izforwe y.

nited States atent MULTIPLE SECTION srRAronr kNrrrrNc MACHINES Dent Hall Turner, Albemarle, N. C. Application October 7, 1955, Serial No. 53?,076 7 Claims. (Cl. 666-432} As is well known, the size of the fabric loops produced on such machines is determined by the amount or length of yarn kinked about the needles by the forward thrust of the sinkers between the needles. The knitting sections of these'machines are individually equipped with means to regulate or vary the needle press movement to compensate for slight variations due to inaccuracies in the proportioning of the component parts, lost motion which may develop or other conditions which may affect or introduce undesired differences in the lengths of fabric produced'by different knitting sections. This adjustment is made periodically over the entire machine in order to maintain uniform fabric lengths as produced by the respective knitting sections.

However, when such an adjustment is effected after the machine has been correctly erected, the press setting of the needles is disrupted and with repeated adjustments the performance of the entire machine is affected and its production lowered. For this reason, principally, it is important that the basic press position of the needles of a modern, high-speed, fine gauge knitting machine is never altered. Any deviation of the needles from the usual gauge will upset their correct path during the knitting cycle and impair the performance of the entire machine.

Notwithstanding the desirability of a constant press position of the needles as mentioned in the foregoing paragraph, variations in lengths of the blanks produced by the machine occur because of variables having no relation to the operation or physical characteristics of the machine. Among these may be mentioned differences in elasticity of the yarns used in the various sections, differences in tension of the yarn between knitting sections and changes in humidity and other atmospheric conditions'from day to day.

It is accordingly the principal object of my invention to provide a mechanism forming a component part of a knitting machine of the type aforesaid, wherein each knitting section of the machine may be individually adjusted in a facile manner, to effect small increments of change in the size of the fabric loops between the minimum and maximum sizes of which the machine is capable, whereby it is possible to maintain uniformity in length between the blanks produced by the various sections under all conditions.

Another object is to provide an improved component part of a knitting machine of the type described in which the aforesaid adjustment is effected in a positive, facile manner, by known small increments and in which the adjustment of each section is positively maintained until again changed.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, after a study of the Patented Sept. 10, 1957 following description in connection with the accompanying drawing.

in the drawing:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view through one knitting section of a multiple-section machine having the invention incorporated therein, and showing the position of the parts during the sinkering stroke of the machine,

Figure 2 is a vertical section corresponding to Figure 1 and showing the position of the parts when the press arm is being actuated by the press cam.

Figure 3 is a front elevation showing the relation between the press arm, short press arm and regulator arm.

Figure 4 is a sectional view to an enlarged scale corresponding to Figure 2 and showing the regulator foot, press foot and, cooperating ends of the regulator arm and press arm, and

Figure 5 is a detail View of the needles, illustrating them in full lines in their sinkering stroke position and in broken lines in their press action position.

Referring in detail to the drawings wherein like numerals identify corresponding parts throughout, 1 identifies one of a series of spring beard needles mounted in closely-spaced side-by-side relation in and upstanding from a needle bar 4 of one section of the machine. As is well known in the art, knitting is partly accomplished by cooperation between these needles and sinkers 2, whereby the size of the loops of the fabric is determined by the amount of yarn kinke'd about the needles by forward thrust of the sinkers between needles.

The needle bar 4 is connected at each of its ends by means of hinges such as 3, to the distal ends of a respective needle bar lift arm 5, only one hinge and one arm being shown in the drawing. The arms 5, of which there are two for each knitting section of the machine, extend horizontally inwardly from a rock shaft, not shown, and are, by appropriate and well-known mechanism forming no part of this invention, periodically pivoted about their rock shaft during the knitting cycle, to impart the required cyclic vertical motion to the respective needle bars.

The required needle press movements are' effected by 'ice .mechanism which includes a press cam 6 secured to a main cam shaft 7 extending along the machine and constantly driven during its operation by mechanism not shown. A press shaft 9 also extends transversely across the machine an keyed or pinned thereon is a press arm 8 having a roller 10 journaled on the pin 11 fixed in arm 8 between its ends. As shown upon Figures 2 and 4, the distal or lower end of arm 8 has a slot 3a arcwate about the pivot axis of the arm. A stud 12a is carried by the arm within this slot for adjustment therealong. An adjusting screw 12 is threaded transversely through the lower end of the arm so that turning of the screw effects adjustment of the stud within and along the slot. The stud projects laterally from the press arm 8 in parallel relation with the pivot axis of the arm and its free end at times engages, as a stop, the end of press foot 13 rigidly secured to front \rail 14 of the machine. Screw 12 is normally adjusted so that roller 10 is held slightly out of contact with the round portion of cam 6 to enable the roller Iii to be shifted axially for other known operations required in knitting as shown to an exaggerated scale in Figure 1.

A regulator arm 15 is a journaled on press shaft 9 and is prevented from movement axially of the shaft, by a collar 16 pinned to the shaft and abutting one side of the arm and an operating or short press arm 17 also pinned to the shaft and abutting the other side of the arm. As clearly shown in Figure 2, operating arm 17 has a stud 18 fixed to its free end which extends behind regulator arm 15 in position to engage and oscillate the same when shaft 9 is correspondingly rotated by engagement of the lobes of cam 6 with roller 10. The regulator arm 15 has 3 a stud 19 fixed to it and extending in the direction to engage. a notch of the layout lever 20.

By a known construction, needle bar fork 21, which depends from needle bar 4, is pivoted to the contiguous end of layout lever 20 by an adjustable construction generally identified at 22, wherein a pin 23 journaled in the end of the layout lever passes through a slot in the end of the needle bar fork'and is adjusted in and along the slot by set screws 24 in a manner obvious from Figures 1 and 2.

By this construction oscillations of the press arm 8 impart like oscillations to needle bar fork 21 about the axis of hingle 3 with the result that the beards of the needles are brought into contact with the longitudinally extending press edge 2a of the machine as required in knitting. The regulator shaft 25 has a regulator foot 26 clamped thereto which is engaged during the cyclic operation of the machine, "by an adjusting screw 27 threaded through the distal end of the regulator arm 15 when the parts are in the position shown in Figure'l to thereby limit the clockwise movement of the regulator arm 15 and the corresponding limiting position of the needle bar 4. The screw 27 has an integral notched head 28 for engagement by a leaf spring 29 secured to the end of the arm whereby the screw is releasably held in any one of a large number of very fine positions of adjustment. The end of the screw is urged into contact with the regulator foot 26 by a coilspring 30 secured at one end to the regulator arm and at the other end to an abutment 31 on the machine See Figure 1.

In operation when it is desired to adjust the machine to form larger fabric loops on any one kniting section of the machine, the screw 27 which has standard right hand threads is turned clockwise a number of notches as determined by spring 29 and corresponding to the desired increase in the size of the fabric loops.

The result of this adjustment is that the needles 1 of that section of the machine are positioned deeper in the sinkers 2 only during the sinkering stroke when the end of screw 27 carried by regulator arm 15 abuts the regulator foot26. On the other hand, when that section of the machine is to be adjusted to produce smaller loops or shorter fabric the screw 27 is turned counterclockwise by a number of notches corresponding to the desired decrease in size of the loops, whereby the needles 1 are brought forward outwardly of the sinkers 2 and less yarn is kinked thereabout. By this construction regardless of the position of the needles 1 from the press edge 2a, of each knitting section during the sinkering stroke, all the needles 1 of the entire machine are brought back to their basic press setting when the press movements are imparted to the regulator arms 15. Thus all the needles of the entire machine contact the pressedges with uniform pressure and in unison.

While I have shown a preferred form of the invention, numerous modifications, alterations and substitutions will be obvious to those skilled in the art after a study of the foregoing description. Consequently, the description is to be taken in an illustrative rather than in a limiting sense; and it is my desire and intention to reserve all modifications and substitutions and combinations falling within the scope of the subjoined claims.

Having now fully disclosed the invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: V

1. Ina straight knitting machine having a needle bar and a needle bar fork connected therewith, the combinatlon of means for cyclically pivoting said needle bar and needle bar fork about an axis parallel with said bar, said means comprising a layout lever having an adjustable, pivotal connection with said needle bar fork, a press shaft, 2. press arm and a short press arm fixed on said press shaft, a regulator arm journaled on said press shaft, means carried by said regulator arm and adjustable to varythe limiting position thereof toeffect a corresponding 4 limit to motion of the needles in their sinkering stroke, a pivotal connection between said regulator arm and said layout lever, and a pin fixed in the distal end of said short press arm and engaging said regulator arm cyclically to effect press movement of the needle bar.

2. In a needle bar operating mechanism for a straight knitting machine including a needle bar lift arm, a needle bar, a needle bar fork secured to and mounting said needle bar and hinge means pivotally mounting said needle bar fork on the distal end of said lift arm for pivotal movement about an axis parallel with said needle bar, a layout lever, an adjustable pivotal connection between contiguous ends of said layout lever and said needle bar fork, a press shaft, a press arm fixed to said shaft, an operating arm fixed to said shaft, a regulator arm journaled on said shaft, a pivotal connection between said regulator arm and layout lever, a regulator foot, an adjusting screw carried by the distal end of said regulator arm for engagement withsaid regulator foot, a stud fixed in the end of said operating arm to engage said regulator arm and move the same away from said regulator foot in response to press movement of said arm cyclically during the operation of the machine, and cam means operable in timed relation with said needle bar lift arm to pivot said press arm.

3. In a mechanism for a straight knitting machine including a needle bar fork, a needle bar secured to the upper end of said fork, a layout lever pivotally connected to the lower end of said fork and means mounting said fork between the ends thereof for pivotal movement about an axis parallel with said bar, a press shaft parallel with said bar, first and second press arms fixed to said shaft having greater and lesser effective lengths, respectively, a regulator arm journalled on said shaft and having means associated with its distal end for limiting the angular movement about the axis of said shaft, means pivotally connecting said layout lever with said regulator arm between the ends of said regulator arm, means oscillating said first press arm in timed relation with said machine, and means carried by the distal end of said second press arm to engage and operate said regulator arm in response to oscillations of said first press arm corresponding to press motion of said needle bar.

4. In a knitting machine having a plurality of knitting sections each comprising a needle bar and a needle bar fork depending therefrom and means pivotally mounting said needle bar fork between the ends thereof, the com bination of means for adjustably varying the pivotal movement of said needle bar fork and said needle bar in sinkering motion of said bar, said means comprising a press shaft parallel to said bar, first and second press arms of greater and lesser effective length fixed on said press shaft, a regulator arm journaled on said shaft, a regulator shaft, a regulator foot clamped to said shaft, a regulator screw threaded through the distal end of said regulator arm and engaging asid regulator foot, a cam shaft, a roller journaled on said first press arm between the ends thereof, a cam fixed on said cam shaft and engaging said roller to pivot said first press arm, a stud fixed on the distal end of said second press arm and engaging said regulator arm to effect separation of the adjusting screw thereof from said regulator foot in press motion of said first press arm, a layout lever, a pivotal connection between said layout lever and regulator arm and an adjustable pivotal connection between said layout lever and said needle bar fork and adjustable to vary the effective length of said layout lever.

5. In a multiple section straight knitting machine wherein each section comprises a needle bar, a needle bar fork depending from said bar and means pivotally supporting said fork between the ends thereof for oscillation about an axis parallel with said bar, a layout lever, a pivotal connection between one end of said layout lever and the contiguous end of said needle bar fork and adjustable to vary the effective length of said layout lever, a press shaft parallel with said needle bar, first and second press arms of greater and lesser effective length secured to said press shaft, a roller journaled on said first press arm between the ends thereof, a cam shaft, a cam fixed on said cam shaft to engage said roller and thereby cyclically oscillate said press shaft in operation of the machine, a regulator arm journaled on said press shaft, a pin fixed in the distal end of said second press arm and adapted to engage and oscillate said regulator arm, a regulator shaft, a regulator foot secured to said regulator shaft and having an offset abutment, an adjustment screw threadedly connected with the distal end of said regulator arm and engageable with said abutment to variably limit the effective oscillation of said regulator arm, and a spring connected with said regulator arm and urging the same to bring said screw and abutment into engagement, actuation of said press arms by said cam operating to separate said screw and abutment against the urge of said spring in sinkering motion of the machine.

6. In a knitting machine, a needle bar, a needle bar fork connected at its one end with said needle bar and supported intermediate its ends for pivotal movement about an axis parallel with said needle bar, a layout lever pivotally connected at its one end with the other end of said needle bar fork, a press shaft, a regulator arm journaled on said press shaft, a pivotal connection between said regulator arm and layout lever, a press arm and an operating arm both fixed on said press shaft, means operable to cyclically pivot said press arm, press shaft and operating arm, and means carried by said operating arm engaging and pivoting said regulator arm in a direction corresponding to press movement only of said needle bar.

7. A knitting machine as recited in claim 6, a regulator shaft, a regulator foot fixed on said regulator shaft and having an offset abutment, and adjustable screw means between the distal end of said regulator arm and the abut ment of said regulator foot to vary the limiting position of said regulator arm and the corresponding limiting position of said needle bar.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,417,289 Zwicky May 23, 1922 2,123,868 Start of al. July 19, 1938 2,581,307 Smetana Ian. 1, 1952 2,629,993 Lambach Mar. 3, 1953 

